1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a method and apparatus for cleaning the atmosphere; and more particularly to a stationary substrate such as a stationary motor vehicle comprising at least one atmosphere contacting surface having a pollution treating composition thereon.
2. Discussion of the Related Art
A review of literature relating to pollution control reveals that the general approach is to reactively clean waste streams entering the environment. If too much of one pollutant or another is detected or being discharged, the tendency has been to focus on the source of the pollutant, the cause of the pollutant or the waste stream containing the pollutant. For the most part gaseous streams are treated to reduce the pollutants prior to entering the atmosphere.
It has been disclosed to treat atmospheric air directed into a confined space to remove undesirable components therein.
However, there has been little effort to treat pollutants which are already in the environment; the environment has been left to its own self cleansing systems.
References are known which disclose proactively cleaning the environment. U.S. Pat. No. 3,738,088 discloses an air filtering assembly for cleaning pollution from the ambient air by utilizing a vehicle as a mobile cleaning device. A variety of elements are disclosed to be used in combination with a vehicle to clean the ambient air as the vehicle is driven through the environment. In particular, there is disclosed ducting to control air stream velocity and direct the air to various filter means. The filter means can include filters and electronic precipitators. Catalyzed postfilters are disclosed to be useful to treat nonparticulate or aerosol pollution such as carbon monoxide, unburned hydrocarbons, nitrous oxide and/or sulfur oxides, and the like.
Another approach is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,147,429. There is disclosed a mobile airborne air cleaning station. In particular this patent features a dirigible for collecting air. The dirigible has a plurality of different types of air cleaning devices contained therein. The air cleaning devices disclosed include wet scrubbers, filtration machines, and cyclonic spray scrubbers.
The difficulty with devices disclosed to proactively clean the atmospheric air is that they require new and additional equipment. Even the modified vehicle disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 3,738,088 requires ducting and filters which can include catalytic filters.
DE 40 07 965 C2 to Klaus Hager discloses a catalyst comprising copper oxides for converting ozone and a mixture of copper oxides and manganese oxides for converting carbon monoxide. The catalyst can be applied as a coating to a self heating radiator, oil coolers or charged-air coolers. The catalyst coating comprises heat resistant binders which are also gas permeable. It is indicated that the copper oxides and manganese oxides are widely used in gas mask filters and have the disadvantage of being poisoned by water vapor. However, the heating of the surfaces of the automobile during operation evaporates the water. In this way, continuous use of the catalyst is possible since no drying agent is necessary.
Responsive to the difficulties associated with devices for proactively treating the atmosphere, the Assignee herein in U.S. Patent application Ser. No. 09/589,182 filed on Jan. 19, 1996, bearing attorney docket no. 3777C, incorporated herein by reference, disclosed apparatus and related methods for treating the atmosphere by employing a moving vehicle. In preferred embodiments a portion of the cooling system (e.g. the radiator) is coated with a catalytic or adsorption composition. Additionally, a fan associated with the cooling system can operate to draw or force air into operative contact with the radiator. Pollutants contained within the air such as ozone and/or carbon monoxide and/or hydrocarbons are then converted to non-polluting compounds (e.g. oxygen gas, carbon dioxide and water).
While this system is effective for reducing or eliminating pollution by the use of moving vehicles, it should be noted that only about 10% of all motor vehicles are moving during peak pollution periods, typically from about noon to 6 p.m. for ozone. Ozone is generated in highest concentrations during the hottest part of the day. In large cities such as Los Angeles, New York and the like the afternoon hours represent the periods of highest ozone concentration. Yet if only 10% of all motor vehicles are moving during this period of time, then the remaining 90% of the motor vehicles are idle and cannot avail themselves of the pollution eliminating benefits described in U.S. patent application Ser. No. 09/589,182 filed on Jan. 19, 1996 bearing attorney docket no. 3777C.
It would therefore be a significant advance in the art of treating the atmosphere to remove pollutants if stationary devices such as billboards, air conditioners, non-moving motor vehicles and the like equipped with a pollution removing composition, can be used to treat air to remove pollutants therefrom. In particular, it would be of significant benefit to employ the tremendous numbers of idle motor vehicles as air treating devices to reduce pollution and smog, particularly in large cities.